One Man's Trash

There is an old saying that, "One man’s trash is another’s treasure." How very true that is. It all depends, I suppose, on the value system of each individual. As each person, or class of people, grows in affluence their values evolve through different levels of comfort and security. As a society, I fear that we may have gone too far in that direction. We demand too much and certainly wouldn’t dream of putting up with less. Surprisingly, however, we’re always quite satisfied for others to accept a supposedly lower standard. In fact, we’re often willing to compromise the standards of others in order to maintain our own. In short, we become snobs ... sometimes even bigoted snobs. The great lesson in this area is to be learned from children. They assign value and beauty to things without the corruption of our cynicism. Unjaded by their tender years, they see only the good in many things. Call it immaturity. I call it a gift. Much like I think God would be, they are oblivious to price tags and other such emotional encumbrances. They see only the obvious intrinsic value, perhaps even magnified by their own youthful imaginations. Well, call me crazy, but maybe the whole world looks a lot better from that perspective. Sometimes, it might do us some good to approach life from such a standpoint. Perhaps there’s way more treasure that we’re missing out on just because it looks like trash to us. The greatest wisdom, at times, can be discovered withing the simplest of hearts.

One Man's Trash
One man's trash is another man's treasure
What one discards brings another pleasure
A broken bottle washed in the sand
Becomes a jewel in a child's hand
What looks like drift wood to you or I
Might be a toy boat in someone's eye
A dandelion is the gardener's weed
But a prize to the young at heart indeed
For beauty and magic and simple delight
Depend on perspective, more vision than sight
So don't be too busy or haughty or wise
To look at the world through another's eyes
For to see the wonder in simple things
Is a priceless gift, like the joy it brings
By Frank Carpenter ©